Abyss
by Phearo
Summary: Another time. Another City. Another Tale.
1. Discovery

The muffled sound of rain drops caused my consciousness to slowly return. A blurry man was there to my welcome my awakening- his image swaying side to side.

"Oy! This one's wakin' up!"

My vision cleared to see a scruffy looking man, wrinkles and scars plaguing his face, and the lightness of his hair signifying his years. He grinned and squinted at me, happy to see that I've awoken. A voice from behind, somewhat distorted by the roaring of the rain, caught the old man's attention. The other voice had a lesser tinge of an accent, might be british- after all, who better to recognize it than one who is?

"What about the others?"

'_Others?' _I mentally comment. Surveying my surroundings, I discover other folks that lay beside me.

Even with my hazy memory, I could easily manage to remember them.

The Gertude Family. For someone as rich as them, you'd wonder why they wouldn't be careful as to not go about in this sort of weather. Can't say I'm any better. I, after all, took their deal.

"Not good, seems like this one's the only early riser."

The old man gazed back and forth between the other unconscious personnel.

"Well, who is it?"

"Er, ah, the one wearing the weird jumpsuit thing!"

"That one's the pilot, Duncan."

"Yeah, ain't that what I said?"

"No, Duncan, you didn't even know it!"

"What ya talkin' about, Moikey? 'Course I do!"

"Earlier you- Nevermind. Why am I even trying to bother with you?"

Just as the bickering of the two stopped, I found myself able to proper sit-alas, the dull sensation of pain from my bruises ensured that I was still hardly in tip-top condition. At least I now knew where I truly was- a boat; a fishing boat to be exact, judging from the piles of bait, fish, and what-nots you need for this kind of business. I've never found it to be a compelling hobby; so understandably, I knew nothing of what these equipments do.

"..Where are we going?" I asked the first question that lingered in my mind. The heavy rain and the strong wind that carried it hindered vision from escaping the vessel. The old man, 'Duncan', noticed my question, and pointed to the light in the distance.

"We're goin' to that lighthouse, lassie." His grin practically reached his ears. Truly I wonder what has gotten him so jolly. The rain continued strong, and all the boat's passengers are completely drenched.

There wasn't much else to talk about as the boat approached the lighthouse. It perched itself upon a tiny island, isolated from the rest of the world. The moment the boat had landed on the dock, the two men had carried the Gertudes into a worn-out shed just besides the tall building. They had started to cater the family, tending any wounds that they might have. Never been any good with taking care of folks, might as well help out through other means.

Got to find something to dry them off with- there's nothing in this shed, so maybe the lighthouse has something we could use?

It only took a few steps for the grizzled, yet still beaming old man notice my actions.

"Where ya off to?"

"Checking things out. I'll be useless here anyway." I see no reason to lie to the man, yet for some reason I can't find myself trusting him- something just doesn't seem right. The look on his face tells he shared the same sentiments as I, that is, he wasn't too keen on the idea of me leaving his sight.

"Yer hurt, sweetheart, I rather do it myself."

The geezer wanted to say more, but the british man was more than happy to interject.

"Just let her go, will you, Duncan? At least she's helping. I don't want more baggage."

I swear I could have almost see this 'Duncan' choke a scoff. The other male, having enough of the conversation, went back to silently care for the family once more.

'_Thanks.'_ I would've said it properly, but it was clear that the man would not talk to either of us, so giving a mental shrug; I trudge upwards, feet splashing on each slippery step, inching closer to the brick tower.

It didn't take a while to reach the destination, as the little speck of light from a distance before now stood as a silent behemoth before me.

_Knock! Knock! Knock!_

"Hello, is anyone in there?"

I bashed on the wooden door. Even if might look that it could quiver with enough force, it's metal frames keeps it firmly rooted to its walls.

_KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!_

"We're in terrible need of assistance! Hello?"

'_Is nobody home after all?'_

In frustration, I absentmindedly reached out for the door once more. It, much to my surprise, opened the moment I turned the handle. A small peek through the small opening I've created showed the stacks of wooden crates upon the aged wooden floor. The smell of dust and abandonment filled the insides of the building.

'_I suppose I should take a look around.'_

It didn't take long to notice a few coins just laying infront the door. Upon inspection, the quarters sported the emblem of an eagle with "UNITED STATES OF AMERICA" embossed all around its edges. I tucked the silver eagles into my pockets, just in case I might have to use them later.

I rummaged each box I could find, most turning out empty, some having ragged, dusty, clothing, and some only containing the same quarters I picked up earlier. After a few minutes pass, I was on the last box I could open.

'_Hopefully, there's something here I can use.'_

The lid fell down with a thud as I begun expecting its insides. It was the same as others, except for a small leather bag covered by the rags. Pulling it out, I notice a red cross emblazed on its side.

"Bingo."

Bandages, a few shots of morphine and a couple of penicillin. Aspirin would've been appreciated, but, I digress. No one's going to miss this, judging from how old and worn out the place looked to be.

Alas, that same description was truly a double edged blade, as it took only a few steps towards the entrance before the floor groaned loudly and gave in. A few meters deep, I figure from the pain of the fall.

'_This keeps up and I'm going to need this medical kit more than the ones at the hut.'_

I collected my bearings and stood up from the pile of rubble that softened the impact. The gap between me and the floor of the lighthouse was far too long to reach, even by jumping. A few moments of lightning gave a better view of where I was- another staircase, going down and further into the earth. I followed it, hoping the path leads to a basement, or a more preferably, a ladder. The steps twisted and contorted, with only the dim light of the moonlight illuminating it, and even that proved more and more useless as I ventured deeper into darkness' curtains. Then, there was no more. Darkness embraced my vision, leaving me to feel my way downwards. I was this far, there wasn't much point going back.

It was then that I felt softness underneath my foot, as the squirming of my boots before now muffled by a thick carpet.

'_There should be something I can use for light.'_

I pull up my sleeves and feel my around. From the walls, to the ground, I searched for anything I could recognize. It was then that my hands caught a pillar, tracing up to it, I felt strange curves and a pole attached at the top.

With a pull of the lever, the ground shook; gears crackled, engines roared, metal plates screeched as it collided with one another, and pipes hissed steam to release the pressure of the machination's work. It was a brief cacophony of thundering sounds, and once it was done, the whole room returned once more to still and silence, save for a soft, barely inaudible hum of a machine.

It was then that a tune started playing. The music came from every direction, with static enough to distort some of the song.

_~Will you .ver see such a wonde..ul sight?~_

_~Any..ere else on … world?~_

_~In this …. we trust, in Terra we live~_

_~All away from the na..ons' …..~_

_~Come .. …. and sing with us~_

_~Come on down to...~_

On cue, spotlights on the floor flared up to life and lit up the area, with shining, marble fonts hanging on a metal wall, boldly exclaiming the place's name;

"Terra Feronia."

_~Terra Feronia!~_

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**Author's Notes: Hello, everyone, I had to change parts of the chapter (more like the entire half) because I wasn't really satisfied on how it came out the first time around. I hope you don't mind seeing as I haven't uploaded a second chapter yet.(when I figure out how to city actually looks I would post it, lol) I guess the best way to think of this is as a Alternate Universe story. Please Read N' Review!**


	2. Encounter

In that very moment, the circular indentation of the wall hissed steam and cleared away to give me a sight I have never seen before.

Humongous pillars, taller than what an eye could perceive, stood amongst thick, heavy clouds.

Rings infested these pillars, each plagued by a dozen or so buildings, contraptions, the easiest thing that one could compare them to were towns. Interconnecting the rings were a series of pipes, bridges, and rails.

"Huh..?"

No one would be unable to repress the state of their confusion at such a vista. After all, I was underneath a lighthouse previously, but to reappear to a place so radically different? Is this a hallucination? Have I fallen unconscious?

Before I could continue speculating my situation, a loud clank above me distracted my train of thought. The room before then was riding on one of the city's rails, which it now had detached itself from, landing with a splash onto man made river. The flow of the river pushed the room closer to one of the rings. Soon it reached a steel port, and the room disassembled, leaving only the platform which I stood on, and a slope connecting the vessel to the dock.

'_No time for taking in the sights.'_

No matter how interesting this place looked, I still had a client I had to get back to. My hands went back to the lever, and much to my dismay, pulling at it did nothing to reactivate whatever this thing was.

'_It seems I've to find another way to leave, then.'_

A briskly jumped off of the vessel and cautiously walked forward. The docks quickly led to a opening of a pipe, riddled with varying posters. One thing made clear though was the amount of dust and rust present in the area, how many years has it been since this dock was used? A banner hung above my head;

"Welcome to Terra Feronia, the greatest paradise the world has to offer!"

Taking a look at the previously aforementioned posters, I took notice of the many different rides it presented.

'_This place is an Amusement Park? I wouldn't have guessed."_

Just looking at how grand the whole park itself was from afar, I doubt I wouldn't be forgiven for assuming that this was a full-fledged city. Maybe it was, as well? That hardly matters, however, as I didn't come here to speculate. As a matter-of-fact, I didn't want to be here, at all. But the hallway seemed to stretch on a few more meters. I still have quite a bit of trekking to do before I could leave this place, I suppose.

It took a few minutes to reach a much wider space than the earlier cramped hallway. Its walls were carved in eight directions, with a huge gaping entrance right at the middle of each face. The ceilings were high and spherical, giving room to a giant statue of a lovely maiden. Softening the transition between wall and roof was a thick line of paint, with more metallic letters bolted onto it; repeating the phrase "Visiting Center" over and over again around the room. The floor was littered as it was in the hallway, but now along with paper boxes and plastic cups, a huge stack of luggage and crates were left unattended beneath the statue's foot. In standard fashion, I paced around and read the captions above each opening, but unfortunately, it only lead to other parts of the park.

"Right, of course it wouldn't be easy."

First course of action would be to try and find a map, or better yet, another person. Anything that could tell me where the fastest way out is.

"You know, this ain't no place for strangers.."

A masculine, but nasally voice rang out from everywhere. The way he spoke sounded off, somehow, but I could only act ever more cautious, looking at the edges of my sight, or any spot to run off to.

"Excuse me? Do you know the way out of this place? It's quite a long story, you see, but I've only come here by accident, and I do terribly need to return."

"Return?"

The voice howled at the mentioned of the word. The longer I converse with the man the clearer his madness becomes.

"Once you've reached Feronia…"

The voice's volume softened, but its threatening tone was still ever present.

"You're past the point of no return!"

Underneath the stack of bags came out an enraged man, thin and weathered, scarred and bloodied. His loose overalls barely kept up with him as he ran screaming towards me, a pipe raised by his left hand. Getting close enough, he swung the metal piece like a madman, laughing hysterically as he did so. I ducked and dived through his side, dodging his attacks. I ended up near the stacks of luggage, which I immediately used to my advantage. I took the heaviest bag I could carry, and threw it as hard as I could to the sickly, threatening man. The hit from the rather large bag dazed him long enough for me to run and kick him in the face. The impact this time was enough to knock the man out- though it pains me to think how the fight would've gone on much longer if he was any healthier. I took the pipe from the man's hand and looted his pockets. Another couple of quarters were added to my stack. I'm sure he wouldn't mind a lighter pocket, in exchange for his life. After the way he swung at me like that, I'm sure he hadn't planned to give me any mercy.

Questions now assailed my mind, though; is everyone in this park as crazy as this man, or was he the exception? If so, how am I supposed to survive? I breathe in and ran towards the nearest opening.

"Shopping Center."

Entering the premises, I could only think one thing.

Truly, I've ended up in a horrible place.

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**Author's Notes: Hey there! I hoped you liked that one, because having the write this one was really gave me trouble. Oh well, I think I ended in a good note- Oh wait, I haven't revealed the protagonist's name yet, haven't I? Well maybe it's going to be in the next chapter, maybe it isn't :P. Please Read N' Review!**


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